Josh Jackson scored 19 of his season-high 31 points in the first half and the Detroit Pistons went on to rout the Washington Wizards 120-91 on Thursday.
Jackson didn’t play in Monday’s win over the Toronto Raptors, then didn’t score in 19 minutes of Wednesday’s loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.
“We’re a young team and we don’t have a set rotation,” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. “We need guys who will be ready to play every night, no matter how many minutes they are getting. Josh has been great with that — he’s a pro when it comes to preparation.”
The Pistons overcame Russell Westbrook’s 18th triple-double of the season. Westbrook finished with 16 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds. He also had nine turnovers.
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“Russell has been carrying us on offense, especially with (Bradley Beal) out, and this is the first time he has looked tired,” Wizards coach Scott Brooks said. “A lot of our offensive firepower is in street clothes on the bench, but we need people to give us more help.”
Mason Plumlee added 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Pistons, who had seven players in double figures. The Pistons were fired up after Wizards players laughed while building a 68-41 halftime lead en route to a 106-92 home win on March 27.
“I thought we came out with the right mindset this time, especially after what happened to us in D.C.” said Wayne Ellington. “We showed up.”
Robin Lopez had 16 points on his 33rd birthday for Washington and Alex Len added 14.
“They didn’t fear us,” Lopez said. “They got their confidence early on and when a team gets rolling like that, they aren’t going to worry about taking shots with hands in their faces.”
The Wizards shot just 31.6% from the free-throw line (6 for 19), breaking the team record of 32% (8 for 25) set as the Chicago Packers in a 131-94 loss to the New York Knicks on Jan. 22, 1962.
“I’ve never been a part of a game where a team basically had the same shooting numbers on free throws and on threes,” Brooks said. “We were 6 for 19 from the line and 5 for 19 on threes. You’ve got to step up and make free throws.”
The Pistons shot 49% percent in the first half and held the Wizards to 20% on 3-pointers to take a 63-44 halftime lead. Detroit also went 10 for 10 from the free-throw line while Washington missed all five of their attempts.
“We let a hungry player take shootaround shots all night,” Brooks said. “Josh Jackson’s a really talented guy trying to prove he can play in this league, and we let him do it.”
Len missed two free throws midway through the third quarter, dropping Washington to 0 for 7 from the line before Lopez made one with 3:13 left in the period.
Washington took fewer 3-pointers in the third quarter, missing all three attempts, and still trailed 87-68 at the quarter’s end.
TIP-INS
Wizards: Bradley Beal (hip) missed his third straight game. He leads the NBA at 31.3 points per game.
Pistons: Jackson limped back to the locker room with 1:57 left in the second quarter after rolling his ankle. However, he returned for the second half.
NEAR-MISS FOR MOTOWN
The Detroit Tigers, Pistons and Red Wings haven’t won on the same day since April 6, 2016, but it looked possible late Thursday evening. The Tigers had beaten the Cleveland Indians 3-2, the Pistons were blowing out Washington and the Red Wings led 2-1 in the third period against the Florida Panthers. However, the Panthers tied the game before winning 3-2 in overtime.
UP NEXT
Wizards: Host the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday.
Pistons: Host the New York Knicks on Saturday.